Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Oric Pharmaceuticals Call Options (NASDAQ:ORIC)

Oric Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORIC) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders purchased 2,266 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 2,058% compared to the average volume of 105 call options.

Key Oric Pharmaceuticals News

Here are the key news stories impacting Oric Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large call buying — traders bought roughly 2,266 call contracts (a >2,000% increase vs. average), signaling speculative bullish interest or potential short‑covering that can amplify intraday upside.
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” and reiterated a $25 price target, providing institutional support and a high potential upside narrative for growth investors. HC Wainwright reaffirmation
• Neutral Sentiment: Oric announced selection of the recommended Phase 3 dose (RP3D) for rinzimetostat in combination with darolutamide and will advance the HIMALAYAS‑1 global Phase 3 study — a clinical program advancement that is structurally positive but comes with execution and safety readout risk. Phase 3 RP3D selection
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple reports noted the stock plunged after the Phase 1b update showed safety/tolerability issues at higher doses (investor reaction included steep intraday and after‑hours declines), raising concerns about dose optimization and commercial positioning. Yahoo coverage of drop Investing.com coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Wedbush trimmed its price target from $20 to $17 (still an “outperform”), a modestly less bullish signal that reflects tighter expectations around valuation given the recent safety/dose information. Wedbush price target change

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Dominic Piscitelli sold 52,000 shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.51, for a total value of $702,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 68,148 shares in the company, valued at $920,679.48. The trade was a 43.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 6.82% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oric Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec grew its holdings in Oric Pharmaceuticals by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 4,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. purchased a new stake in Oric Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $37,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals by 184.4% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 4,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 2,936 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 977 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $60,000. 95.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Oric Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 19.0%

ORIC opened at $8.89 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $11.56 and its 200 day moving average is $11.30. The company has a market cap of $892.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.85 and a beta of 1.36. Oric Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $3.90 and a 12-month high of $14.93.

Oric Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ORIC) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported ($0.30) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.34) by $0.04. As a group, analysts predict that Oric Pharmaceuticals will post -2.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ORIC shares. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Oric Pharmaceuticals from $19.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 price objective on shares of Oric Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $19.90.

About Oric Pharmaceuticals

Oric Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in South San Francisco, California. The firm is dedicated to discovering and developing small molecule therapeutics designed to overcome resistance mechanisms in solid tumor oncology. Its research efforts focus on identifying novel targets and advancing precision medicines that can restore or enhance patient response when standard therapies fail.

The company’s pipeline features lead candidates such as ORIC-101, a selective, orally available antagonist of the glucocorticoid receptor currently being evaluated in Phase 1/2 trials for patients with solid tumors who have acquired resistance to chemotherapy and hormonal agents.